Advertising structure



May 13 1924.

S. KIELAR ADVERTISING STRUCTURE Filed Nov. 30 1920 Fig. 2.

Fig. 4.

Fig. 5.

Inventor.

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r I l l L Patented May 13, 1924.

STANISLAW KIELAR, 9F MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN.

ADVERTISING STRTTCTURE.

Application filed November 30, 1920. Serial No. 427,437.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, STANISLAW KiELAR, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Milwaukee, county of- Milwaukee, and State of Wisconsin, have lnvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Advertising Structures; and'I do declare the following to be a clear, exact, and complete description thereof, such as will enable others skilled in the artto which the invention pertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accom panying drawing for an illustration of some forms in which my invention has been embodied.

The invention relates to a means for ad vertising, and is primarily designed for use in advertising brands of cigarettes, although it will be understood that the invention is not to be restricted in its uses to those stated.

The devices constituting my invention are intended to be used for displaying advertising, in which the elements of substantial and durable formation resembling packages of cigarettes may be ranged 111 designs and and dealers in cigarettes to cord or build up advertising structures from the empty cartons in which the cigarettes are ofiered for sale. The lightness of these cartons and the lack of any means for efiectively securing them into a structure, has limited very very materially the designs which could be constructed or erected from such cartons. On account of their extreme mobility, it has been difi'icult to prevent the accidental displacement of such cartons, with the result that it has not been possible to secure and perpetuate advertising structures of this rettes which they simulate. saw kerf in each of the edges and ends of class, even when such structures were of the'simplest form.

In carrying out my invention, I employ a series of rectangular blocks of wood of suitable thickness, and I cover such blocks with thelabels customarily used upon the cartons, so that such covered blocks, when displayed convey a correct impression as to the proportlons of the packages of clga- I then make a the covered blocks. By means of a specially devised spring clip, inserted for half of its length in the kerf in the edge or end of the block, I am able to secure the blocks toeach otherin any desired horizontal or vertical or angular arrangement. When all of the blocks which it is desired to thus unite in an advertising structure have been assembled and secured together, it will be found that the manner of attachment or connection is such that the several blocks in the structure will retainthe positions which they are intended to occupy in the completed design. These designs may take the form of flat or curved walls, to. which side walls standing at an angle may be connected in :clip which I have devised as a means for securing or connecting theblocks together. This spring clip, although of simple construction, has the valuable feature of effecting a resilient engagement with the walls of the kerfs with which the blocks are provided. The elastic feature of the clip referred to enables the spring clip to be compressed when inserted in the kerf, and this property of the spring produces a suflioient frictional engagement between the elements of the structure to insure the desired stability thereof, Moreover, it has been observed that thespring clip has very desirable additional characteristic in that it readily compensates for the wearing away of the side walls of the kerf with the re peated insertion of the connecting members, so that despite such wear the blocks are not soiled in handling or otherwise discolored and rendered unattractive. This practice involved a waste of material which is eliminated by the use of my invention, inasmuch as the blocks which I use may be covered with fresh labels when those in use have become discolored or otherwise unattractive.

The features of my invention will be pointed out in the appended claim.

In the drawings which accompany this specification, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a block formed in accordance with my invention, and covered with a label con-' ventionally designed to show any popular brand of cigarettes.

Fig. 2 is a view in elevation, partly broken out, showing two adjacent blocks and the manner in which they are connected or attached by the insertion of a spring clip in the adjacent saw kerfs in the edges thereof. Fig. 3 is an edge view of'one of the spring clips designed to unite the advertising blocks in the form of a flat structure such as is illustrated in Fig. 2.

Fig. a is an edge view of one of the spring clips designed for use in uniting theblocks into the form of a curved wall.

Fig. 5 is an edge view of one of the spring clips designed to connect the blocks to form an angle or corner.

Fig. 6 shows conventionally a flat arch structure, erected in accordance with my invention. It will be understood that this figure'shows merely one form of structure in which the invention may be embodied and is therefore only a diagrammatic representation.

In the drawings, Figure 1, the numeral 10 designates one of the elements to be incorporated in an advertising structure. This element is conveniently formed of a rectangular wooden block of suitable thickness, so that the element when covered with an appropriate label, will simulate a package of cigarettes. The wooden block is indicated by the numeral 11 in Figs. 2 and 6, and is provided with a saw kerf 12 cut around the central line of the sides or edges and ends thereof.

To connect the blocks together in the ad vertising structure designed, I employ a spring clip 13, formed from a flat strip of spring metal, the ends of which are folded towards each otherinto a plane paralleling that of the body of the strip, as shown in Fig. 3, the ends of such strip approaching but not contacting with each other. By the use of the blocks 11, prepared as described in connection with Figure 1, an advertising structure of any fancied design may be erected by simply inserting the spring clips in the saw kerfs of the adjacent blocks. There is no limit to the range of the designs which may be thus erected.

The spring clips engage the side walls of the saw kerfs with a frictional contact which is sufiicient to preserve the engagement against accidental displacement. As a result, a structure when once erected, will remain intact until disassembled by separating the blocks and withdrawing the connecting spring clips. These provisions enable me to erect an advertising structure or. design of stability, and to achieve the true function of artistic advertising, which is to create something of pleasing appearance. The structure thus constituted, is safe against accidental displacement, and so may be displayed in its original structural form as long as desired.

By curving the main portion of the clip at the center thereof, as indicated in Fig. 4, I may produce semi-circular or other curved forms of walls, and by making an angular bend at the same point, as in Fig. 5, I can change the direction in which the walls extend, so as to produce corners or angles. It will be seen that the range in which the advertising structures may be embodied is limited only by the fancy of the advertiser.

Referring now to the spring clips in the several forms illustrated, it will be seen that in each of such forms the clip is provided with two parallel members which enter. the saw kerf in the block and act with an expansive force to effect a frictional engagement therewith. This frictional engagement, as before indicated, is suilicient to render the connection between the blocks permanent for the time desired by the advertiser, and that ordinary accidental displacement of the elements constituting the advertising structure cannot take place.

Iam aware that it has heretofore been proposed to unite toy building blocks by means of rigid connecting pieces inserted in slits in the sides of such blocks, but such prior structures fail to achieve the purpose of my invention in that the rigid and inelastic pieces have no means for compensating for the wear which follows their insertion and removal from the slits. As a result the joints become loose and the structures will not remain in the positions in which they are placed. My invention overcomes the difficulties and objections of the former structures, in that the parallel spring members of the clip are possessed of an expansive property which will engage theside walls of the saw kerfs, and effectually hold the elements of the advertising structure in the positions in which they have been placed.

Having thus described my invention, What uniform depth with' parallel sides, and I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent spring clips aving expansive frictional en- 10 of the United States, is gagement in the kerfs of contiguous blocks The combination of a series of advertisin to unit them into an advertising structure. 5 blocks, each bearing advertising matter an In testimony whereof, I have signed my simulating the articles advertised, each of name at Milwaukee, this 20th day of Novemsuch blocks being saw-kerfed upon its edges ber, 1920.

and ends, said saw kerfs forming recessesof STANISLAW KIELAR. 

